The present invention relates generally to the field of computerized data processing, and more particularly to a rank-based calculation for keyword searches.
The growth of computing and information technology has enabled a user to easily access information stored within a large number of documents (e.g., a text document, PDF, source code editor, etc.) at different locations, such as a local hard drive of a computing device or a remote web server on the Internet. However, quickly locating the specific information sought by a user within a document remains a challenge.
When reading a document, a user may be more interested in some parts of the text than other parts of the text. Additionally, a particular user may prefer to read certain parts first, or to only be directed to the parts of the document of interest to the particular user. For example, different users who search the keyword index of a programming manual may have differing preferences; application users may prefer to search how to use the index, system administrators may prefer to search how to manage the index, and database developers may prefer to search the index catalog table.
In order to view certain parts of a document, certain tools such as a ‘Find’ function, are commonly used, which allow a user to type in a word or phrase, and each instance of that word or phrase may be highlighted within the document. A user may then click a ‘next’ button, which allows the user to move through each instance of the word or phrase contained in the document in a step-wise manner, in order to find the specific information or section for which the user is searching. However, in many instances, a user does not always want to find all of the matched words in one search, rather the user may prefer to find the matching word or phrase within a specific scope or context of the document.
In many searches, some paragraphs or sentences may get more attention than others. There is a need for an improvement to the keyword search, including adding additional contextual parameters, in order to make the keyword search calculation more accurate and efficient for each user, based on the most common search behaviors and preferences of each user. It is desirable to have a system and method for directing a particular user to a specific section of interest within a document, without the need for the user to step through each instance of a searched keyword or phrase.